Leibell Pleads Guilty to Two Felonies, 18 to 24 Month Prison Term Likely
Former senator Vincent Leibell pled guilty to felony charges of obstruction of justice and tax evasion Monday and will likely serve 18 to 24 months in prison. Leibell, a state senator for 16 years in the 40th District and the county executive-elect in Putnam, pled guilty to both counts in federal court in White Plains Monday morning.
The obstruction of justice charge stems from Leibell’s role in a not-for-profit senior housing development organization established in 1999, presumably the Putnam Community Foundation. The FBI and IRS had been assisting a federal grand jury investigating allegations that Leibell had threatened to withhold payments of invoices to an attorney unless the attorney returned half the money to Leibell in cash.
In April, Leibell caught wind of the investigation and met with the attorney several times to discuss it. On June 6, Leibell was recorded asking the attorney to lie about his reasons for withdrawing the money, saying he should tell federal agents the money was withdrawn to pay for care for his elderly mother, in case of a terrorist attack or in case he became ill. The tax evasion charge stemmed from 2003 to 2006 tax returns, in which Leibell failed to report $43,000 in cash payments from two attorneys. Asked how he pled, Leibell replied, “Guilty, your honor,” to each charge. During a 30-minute court appearance this morning, Leibell answered Judge George Yanthis’s questions and read a brief statement admitting to the crimes. “I regret these actions,” Leibell said, going on to apologize to his family, the government and his constituents. Leibell will be sentenced on March 7, 2011. He faces up to 13 years total for the charges, but the sentence will likely be within the sentencing guidelines of 18-24 months in prison.
Read the full story in the Dec. 7-13 issue of The Examiner.
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.